Solid Love
by kazu-bells
Summary: Kevin, a prince of an older era, never respected love. He was cursed by a spirit of the garden and forced to remain in stone until he finally understands what true love is. After 1000 years, he meets a new, modern prince, Prince Dee, who shows him what it means to find a soulmate, but can their love be as strong as the stone Kevin was cursed under?
1. Chapter 1

It is said that the garden holds secrets only maze walls whisper and fountains mutter. With each vine and pebble, the path is marked in the arteries of Mother Nature's heart and soul, forever bound by man who dedicates himself to her everlasting beauty. With a garden kept free and alive as this one, one may say it breathes from the earth's magic centuries old. Each flowering bud sees a new generation, each rock holds memories to one's own passionate soul. The garden expanding miles on end across the ever-standing castle that has seen far too many joys and horrors buried beneath the castle walls that not even recorded history books could obtain such graphic detail.

The royal family descended from old kings and queens of the past call this garden, the _Gardens of Forevermore_. With it living far longer than any king or queen harbored within the castle walls, it has survived to tell tales no one of the 21st century has known. One tale in particular within this vast maze of scented roses and resting rocks remember the story of the long-lost prince Kevin, a man fitted for the crown in marriage to the royal family's princess. He was a rugged, easy-going type with one thing on his mind, a fortune fit for a king and feast the heartiest male could desire.

It was an arranged marriage, destined never to be for the day he turned eighteen was the day his life stood still though yet not in death did he lay, but in stone. Legend goes that the long-lost prince was doomed in curse alone to stand still in statue form within a secret, unmarked section of the _Garden of Forevermore_. A spirit of the garden entrapped him in stone to teach him a lesson with only one favor in mind to be free:

_"Only time within this garden may tell you of your awakened fate, _

_Doomed forever in stone among the vines and secret gates_

_Until true love's kiss among soul mates doest thou break_

_Upon your lips of different eras meet unearth your wake."_

Prince Kevin was doomed in stone until his soul mate surpassing the fates of time could free him from his solid slumber. However, only that of true love may break the spell, any other would be forgotten of his tale. Many have come across him over the centuries and yet with knowledge of the curse, they try their luck at freeing him from his state. It was only until the legend softened to the ear that his chances to freedom were possible.

As the centuries flew by, his soul completely aware of the world around him and his eyes never leaving sight of time's graceful erosion and constant evolution of the garden reminiscing view, so did his heart's look on the world. He matured in heart and soul into a true man. A cold-hearted slab of flesh into a warm-welcoming soul of stone he became. He was a gentler man, a more wiser, genuine and respectful lot. He was not after riches and gold, temporary feasts that fed the belly soon to be digested and forgotten, he was truly hoping for a true love, one he neglected in his old life, one he wished he had awoken to then of the beauty of her grace and respected her as his soon-to-be wife. He didn't and he was a fool for neglecting the heart over something foolish as greed, lust, gluttony, and pride. He was a sinner without action, a fool in thought and a terrible excuse for a human being.

He realized, he deserved to be cursed, to be locked away for who knows how long until he was free from the spirit's curse. He grew fond of the spirit who visited him often and spoke with him without a word in return. He would tease the prince, engage warmly in deep, intellectual discussion of the progression of the world. They become buds in spirit and at one time the spirit apologized for his rude behavior, hastily showing him what he deserved. The argument very vivid in their minds.

Kevin had met the spirit by chance and they talked softly about the arranged marriage that was soon to occur within the castle walls. Kevin had gone to the garden to say his last good-byes to what he believed was freedom from being tied down by a woman he did not love. The spirit questioned this thought, marriage without love? Was he truly willing to admit defeat so willingly simply for some selfish desires? Kevin agreed that it was his wish to do and that true love was out of his hands, that there was nothing else he could do and he had given up on the such preposterous notions long ago. It was in that instant that the spirit cursed him and he never once got to say thank you for it. He needed his eyes opened before he truly locked himself away without thinking, he needed that slap to the face to realize that there were other people out there for him, who he didn't necessarily need in order to become a king, the person he loved was his queen because he loved them.

Kevin felt like weeping, to cry to the heavens that he was wrong. Love is truly more important than gold and jewels and stuffed pork. He never wanted to marry a complete stranger simply because their parents told him so. He had locked his heart away only to appeal to the desires of everyone else around him and believed that this was best for him with immense perks on the side. And for the first time since his imprisonment, he cried, a single tear flowing down the jagged lines of the stone he was engraved in. No rain could deteriorate him into a forgotten memory, only his heart.

—

It was a beautiful, sunny day, a cool breeze caressing the cheeks of the youngest prince. He was petite and athletically challenged, his frail limbs as thin as the branches above his head. He was Prince Edd, better known to his friends as Double D or Prince Dee. He was picked on by many of the commoner boys when he ventured out into the townscape that had evolved with the times. They called him names like Tweedle Dee is Tweedle Dumb, the dumbest of the castle halls.

He was indeed smart and took a high interest in reading and his studies. The royal family had evolved with the times, proper etiquette wasn't as astute as it had been and surely not as harsh. He was free to do as he pleased and dress as he liked. He wore a signature hat that he and his older brother Eddward fashioned. It was a black beanie with two white stripes. They got it at a local shop in the town when they were younger as a shared reminder of that faithful day they spent together as one of the happiest times they had as brothers. They told one another that just because we are different in style and personality, we are same by birth, name, and the silly hat on our heads. It was a silly fashion statement but one they never forgot and never neglected.

Dee was walking in the garden alone, his brother practicing his archery in the field pass the surrounding fence of the garden. He had ventured throughout the garden and not once did he find the secret section that he was told was forbidden to go into. Today was that day he found the secret, along with its tenant living there. He was astounded by the statue of a prince, tall, handsome, athletically built and yet somehow he could sense a sudden sadness within its cold, stone. He noticed the single tear escaping from the statue's tear duct, internally believing that it was just the condensation but weird it only appeared near the eyes. He wondered about the statue and was worried that it was sad so he talked to it to soothe its solid presence.

"Don't be sad Mr. Statue, all is well. It is a glorious morning today and not a single darkened cloud in sight." Dee had said as he wiped the tear away and placed his hand on the statue's cheek. "Cheer up, Mr. Statue. You are no longer alone." He said before he noticed the vines and moss on the statue's feet.

He grabbed out a small tiny brush that he used to groom his cat and smiled. "Don't tell Einstein, he'd freak if he knew I was using his brush to clean something other than his dainty fur." Dee had described before he brushed the moss off lightly and pulled the vines off gently from the statues legs, cleaning the platform underneath as well.

"There we go, good as new. Who knows how long you have been covered up with Mother Nature's children." He said before giggling.

Dee sat down on the platform and looked up gently at his companion in solid stone. He enjoyed the breeze and the smell of the garden, admiring the butterflies and lady bugs that flew around the bell flowers. He loved Springtime, the sign of birth and rebirth soothing the soul of a new year. He admired the garden and now he had a new favorite place to spend time with and a new friend's company he could enjoy.

The young prince smiled before he heard his name called out among the garden halls and looked worried about the time.

"Oh dear, lunchtime already?" He said before he stood up and brushed off his backside before standing up on the platform to get closer to his newfound friend. "I am sorry I have to go so soon Mr. Statue. I will come again though. Hopefully, my brother doesn't know about this place already. I would hate for him to hurt you in anyway. He doesn't like cold eyes staring at his own." He said before he heard his name called again "Oh dear. I do apologize, please wait for me later, I promise to return." Dee said before he hugged the statue warmly, almost positive he heard the sound of a heartbeat with his ear pressed up firmly against the cold rock shaped in formal clothes.

Dee jumped down and waved, happy he found the secret section of the garden and having made a new friend he could talk to. He left and hid the secret doorway he came through and made sure it wasn't noticeable and with that bid his farewell to his secret place.

—

Kevin was astounded someone after centuries of forgetting about him and his curse have found him. He wasn't sure how many winters had passed since his last encounter with a foolish damsel dying for her prince, her greedy kiss only souring the earthy taste on his lips. He had met someone who truly believed he was a friend and treated him as the spirit had but without knowledge of his current condition. He found a new heir to the thrown of the castle, this one a young boy about fifteen-years-old. The boy was kind, proper, caring, and intellectual. He was cute too but Kevin wasn't about to admit that, not without first understanding why this new boy was so different from the others. Was it because the legend of his curse had died down over the years? Was it because he was lonely and truly wished for some company? Or was it because he felt something for the boy, something he never dreamed of feeling. His heart had beat for the first time since his entrapment. He felt alive within that hug and he was sure the boy had felt it too. He was almost saddened once more the boy had to leave but the thought of his promise in returning made him feel all the more alive again. He had a friend, one who wasn't afraid to talk to to him without feeling awkward about it, one who wasn't there simply for a selfish desire, one who wasn't afraid to use his cat's hairbrush to clean him off of time's growth of the garden. He made a friend and it made him happy.

—

Dee returned hours later after dark to visit his new friend, Mr. Statue. He didn't tell anyone of his find today since he always dreamt of his own place free from his brother's teasing torment and his mother's nagging orders to study and sit properly at the table. He had read two books since he returned back to his home and finished his studies for the day, had two meals, brushed his cat with a newly-cleaned brush, and made his way back out into the garden for his nightly stroll he took alone. He didn't like having company when he had his free time and yet this time he wasn't alone.

He made it back to his secret place and smiled at his stony friend. He waved and gave his normal gap-tooth smile to Kevin. He was happy to see him and he wondered if his statue friend was happy too.

"Salutations, Mr. Statue! Did you have a pleasant day today?" He asked happily before he came by and jumped on the platform, hugging his new friend. "I brought some stone polish I borrowed from the gardener. Don't tell him." He said with a teasing smile. "I thought you deserved a good, proper cleaning. Perhaps you'll look shinier than my Nana's fake teeth. I hate it when she kisses me." He said shrugging before he could almost sense the statue's laughter.

Dee blushed and gave a sassy pout his brother always teased him for. "Don't laugh! I love her but false teeth is not something I want touching me. She needs to learn to kiss my cheek with her lips not bite it off like a zombie." He said before he realized he was talking to a statue about things that he might not understand. "Sorry, zombies are the dead coming back to life and eating people alive. My friends all love horror movies, especially zombie flicks." He sighed before he started to spray Kevin's arm with the polish and wiping it down with a rag.

"I bet you have lived here for centuries. A lot has changed since your arrival, I bet. For one thing, movies are moving pictures, they are projected into a screen or a box, performing a play of sorts. I can tell by your garments that your era must be that of true royalty, so I am sure you had performers and entertainers in your time. That is basically the foundation for plays, TV shows, and movies but electronically based." He said finishing off one arm before working on the chest.

"Another thing we have now is cars, moving carriages without horses and or the use of a cart. They are more insulated and cushioned like a royal carriage but run on gas and go up to 120mph. Everyone has one, high and medium class. Everyone earns money to almost 15k-150k for a car depending on their financial preferences and some families have more than one. Crazy right? We actually have three limos which are like the royal carriages of today, my brother has two cars of his own, my mom and dad each have three. I find it ridiculous to have so many but they believe the more the merrier. It's absurd." Dee scoffed giving his pout again and swearing he heard the statue laugh as he continued to work on the other arm.

"I know, I must be absurd to even think of turning down such a ridiculous present. They got me a car and a motorcycle, which I am too afraid to ride. I am not even old enough to drive yet let alone have my license. My brother says I should just practice and skip the test that no one really cares if a royal family member is driving without one. But I scoffed at him and told him, rules are rules and neither I nor he are exceptions to that rule. Plus, how would I look if I refused to work hard at what I gain to my people. Sometimes my brother doesn't understand that having everything handed to you isn't always the right path to take. It is fine as presents for special occasions but not if it requires actual skill and knowledge to operate. I swear, people of today are really selfish. They think they don' t have to work hard at what they earn in order to gain it. I wonder if it was like that in your time. You may resemble royalty but did you train to be good at what you do or did you just have everything handed to you like it was nothing?" Dee said sounding a little depressed. He clung to his statue friend and almost felt like crying and he wished stone arms could close and comfort him.

Kevin was aware of the kid's words and emotions and he wish he could reply and offer some form of comfort but he was cursed to never hold anyone again in his own arms until he found that special someone. He tried to hug the boy with his soul and he hoped that it traveled through pass the impossible.

Dee smiled and looked up at Kevin and looked grateful for the silence that shut his blabbering lips. "Thank you. You're comfort is most appreciated." He said before he continued to spray the torso before he came to a dilemma.

"Oh my…" He said before blushing. "Please excuse me for what I am about to do." He said as he sprayed Kevin's abdomen area and hips and started to wipe the nether regions softly.

Kevin could feel his cold cheeks burning red with embarrassment and he was wondering if his soul could feel the touches the boy's hands were caressing. He longed for a touch if not to his heart but to his physical body as well and he knew he was long over-do for a good orgasmic reunion with his hand and his manhood. He blushed at the hand on his crotch as well as on his hips and backside, wishing the boy would not be aware or sense his unnerving urges deep within his soul. He didn't want to take advantage of this boy not even in spirit.

"Sorry about that. Don't tell anyone. My friends would never live it down if they knew if my first encounter with genitalia other than my own was done on a statue. Not that you aren't different from anyone else, just that they would tease me for even thinking of talking to you like I was a ninny with some sort of psychological repression to have someone to talk to about my overwhelming thoughts." Dee paused and slowly looked up at the statue's face with reassuring eyes and a soft smile. "But to me, you are more than just a statue in a garden, you are a person and despite what they say, I am proud to have met you." He said with that gap-tooth smile.

Kevin was almost shocked to hear the boy treat him like no one else had ever done, to say that he was person and not just some rusted, old statue in a garden. Every time this boy opened his mouth, it made him feel alive and warm, happy and ecstatic to be here with the chance of meeting him after impossible lengths of time and age. He knew in his heart, this boy was different and he loved him.

Double D finished polishing the legs and feet and then he went to the face, looking hesitant. "Okay, close your eyes." He said, not wanting to hurt his friend with a toxic spray. He wiped the face clean and smiled, glad he could see the moon reflecting off of the stone now and that it heightened the very confines of Kevin's handsome face.

Dee stared at Kevin for the longest time, not sure what to think of the man in front of him. He was so close he could almost see green eyes and red hair, freckles and the cheekbones of an angel. He melted when he saw Kevin's lips, parted slightly in a small smile, almost a smirk that he could vividly see whispering to him as the garden had done so many times in his youth as if it was alive far greater than any plant, stone, or water fountain could ever be.

Dee found himself slowly closing the gap between him and the male statue, standing on his tip-toes just to reach. Their lips fused together, cold and hot mixing the two as Dee wrapped his arms around Kevin's neck. He was falling for the statue, something that should be impossible but he was sure he felt the man's soul laughing at his silly ramblings, comforting him in his darkest, unnerving thoughts, and smiling at him like they had known each for years. He loved the statue, and he didn't know how much the statue loved him in return.

He held the kiss long and hard, wishing he could go deeper and further than the small gap of parted, stone lips would offer until he suddenly felt hands wrapping around him, the gap growing larger and engulfing his lips with their own and the once cold statue before him grew warm and alive, the sound of two heartbeats pounding frantically in the midst of a moonlit, true love's kiss. He was startled by the hands on his back wrapping around his delicate, petite frame and sudden deepness of the kiss. He assumed it was all a hallucination his mind was creating out of pure desire, his thoughts become daydreams and his body feeling things simply because it wanted to but once he opened his eyes, he could see a skin stone that once was gray, and red eyebrows and green eyes that were now more vivid than they once were behind the stone's flesh. He could see the red hair, alive and blowing in the wind like the roses did in their selective bushes. He was almost pulling himself away when he noticed, the statue had come alive but he knew if it was, it was a dream come true.


	2. Chapter 2

Kevin broke the kiss and breathed his very first breath back to life after what seemed to be a millennium. He held the small boy in his arms and was afraid of letting go, afraid that if he did the boy would shun him and run away or worse, he'd be turned to stone again and never again hold the boy in his arms. He would lose him one way or another if he let go now.

He saw the boy's expression, it was confused and somewhat dumbstruck with a little hint of shock, but that was to be expected. Kevin did just arose from what was technically his tombstone, embodying it and living consciously alongside Death in Limbo, watching the world as it passed him by and never once experiencing it for himself. It was a cruel fate, one he did not wish upon anyone, not even his enemies he had in his time.

He didn't know how to explain himself but he was determined to be with this boy, despite with what "being with a boy" actually meant to his old-fashioned sense of reality. In his time, homosexuals were hung and assumed to be evil. Kevin personally sought to abolish such discrimination because of an old law that was jaded and full of arrogance and misguided judgments of the world. He personally had no attachment to such old ways, one reason for his rebellious, defiant attitude to most of his elders and parents. However, standing up for the deviants of society was far different from actually being the deviant that was shunned for its individuality and uniqueness that was not yet explained scientifically or biologically and could not be explained by the user.

He was indeed confused of the feelings he felt for this raven-haired prince, and yet at the same knew exactly what it was he was feeling. He was not entirely confident in how to describe it but he knew, it didn't matter. He was awoken by his soulmate who perceived him as something far beyond the expectations of any visitor he has ever encountered, treating him as a person rather than legend, a human being rather than a prince, and alive as if he was never truly trapped in stone like just was two seconds ago. This kid, small and petite, defied a 1000-year-old curse through innocence, compassion, respect, and love. He was the one, the one Kevin had been waiting for, and he couldn't be more happy for finally meet his soulmate. Was this feeling he was feeling truly evil or was it something he has been waiting for for what seemed like forever?

Dee gulped and looked at the statue, blinking his confusion away before reality hit him. The statue turned into a man, an alive teenager not much older than himself. He was curious about how this was even possible scientifically, but he was brought away from his analysis with a now ginger set of lips smiling happily before him. He was even more shocked when the statue spoke.

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm the renounced prince, Kevin." He said, his smiling alerting nothing out of the ordinary of the very confusing new predicament his smaller companion was in.

Dee was not so surprised by whatever scientific possibility had just occurred but by his next few words. "Renounced?" He questioned, unsure of why he had asked that and why he wasn't just a little bit more freaked out by this.

"Well, it has been over a thousand years or so since I was a prince, my time as prince is over. I was never king and I don't have an heir to my own kingdom so I guess i am no longer a prince. Kevin. Just call me Kevin."

Dee looked at Kevin's face before the name registered and then he smiled. "My name is Edd, but you may call me Double D or Dee. My brother is named Eddward so we try not to get people confused." He said happily engaging in conversation with his statue friend without thought of the sudden change in their relationship. He was kind of relieved to get a response back from his silent friend who he was so warm with conversing with just a few moments ago.

"Well, Dee, it's a pleasure to meet you. Can you do me a favor real quick?" He asked curiously.

"Anything." Dee said without question.

"Can you help me sit down...I have been standing for centuries and I could really use a break." He said, the shaking in his legs from the numbness of suddenly having feeling back in them returning and he felt as if he didn't have part of the kid's feet on the ground for support, they'd both topple over and hit their heads.

Dee obliged and helped Kevin slowly but surely down on the platform to sit down, giggling when Kevin laid back, getting the blood flowing to all of his veins and nerves so he could feel the sense of gravity again without it being a phobia of breaking.

"Thanks. Say, why aren't you more freaked out about this?" He asked.

"I have thought of it scientifically, curious as to how it may be possible but I am quite prone to fairytales and one in particular was a tale about a Prince so cold-hearted in flesh, a wizard turned him into stone, forever to remain until his soulmate arrived and captured his heart into a true-love's kiss."

"It was a spirit. But if you knew that, why was I free? The spirit told me that if someone knew of my condition, they wouldn't be able to set me free. That the legend would have to die down till it was the last thing on the person's mind when kissing me and it wasn't out of greed just to meet their destined prince."

"Well, I will admit, I did fall for you but not out of greed of wanting you to be alive so you could be destined to be mine. I fell for you because while talking with you and remaining in your company, it felt like I could sense your soul and that you were truly there for me when I needed comfort or a smile to warm up to. It felt like I have known you for years even when it has only been a few allotted hours of knowing you." Dee explained before he sat down by his new friend and smiled at him. "Besides who could resist a handsome face like yours." He said teasingly but honestly meaning it.

Kevin smiled before he warmly continued. "I always expected a girl to break the spell but the spirit didn't say it would be one, just that it would be a soulmate." He said looking up at the stars for the first time in ages.

"Is it a disappointment being free and kissed by a boy?" Dee asked somewhat shyly and looking a little hurt.

Kevin sat up and looked at the raven-haired boy before he kissed him again. "Not at all. You were different from everyone else who I have met. You treated me as a person, not a statue, and I fell for you as well without realizing it. I am honored to be free because of you." He said burying his face in the boy's neck and holding him closer.

"I appreciate that." He said before he hugged Kevin back.

"Want some food, a bath, and some sleep?" He asked generously.

"That would be lovely. I am also curious about what this thing called a motorcycle is. You mentioned it but never explained what it was, only that it was similar to the cars and royal carriages you were mentioning." He stated, looking eager to know more.

"You really heard that? Wow. Umm, sure, I'll show it to you. I'll even give it to you. It's too big for me to hold up on my own..." He said looking bashfully about his physique.

"You don't have to give it to me. I just want to check it out!" He said looking happy, the eagerness clearly written on his face.

Dee smiled and giggled. "You are quite knowledgable of our lingo. I had half-expected you to speak fancy and pompous-like." Dee asked a little fascinated by something that surpassed the laws of science and human understanding.

"Nah! I wasn't that big of a prince, I was kind of the black sheep in the family so my speech was already a little rugged. I learned a few lingo and dialects over time from various visitors but I still don't know much of the world today. This garden was all I ever knew and it was the thing that changed the least."

"Then we need to educate you." He said happily before he helped Kevin to his feet and helped him walk around a little before he was back on his feet again and able to walk with him to his house. He showed Kevin how to climb up the vines to his room so they could avoid entering the house and being seen. Once they were up in the room, Kevin noticed how different it looked from his ex-fiancé's room centuries ago and how much more modern and different it looked. He liked the look and feel of it and thought the styles were much more his style than it was in his own time.

Dee told Kevin to wait and that he'd be up with some food and water in a little bit. He asked the maid staff to fix him some leftovers from dinner earlier and that he was hungry again. He told them that he could carry it himself but to help him watch out for his parents or his brother.

He returned with the food, warm and reheated, a full water jug on the tray and he set it on his bedside table and smiled at Kevin to eat.

"Eat up! It's steak, baked potato, garlic bread, and salad. Bon Appétit!" He said before Kevin looked at the food questionably.

"How long ago has this cow been butchered and prepared."

"We got it at a store so probably a few weeks." He asked not really knowing for sure.

"And the cooking time."

"Forty minutes plus two minutes reheated." He said not understanding why he was being swarmed with a pile of questions.

"You sure it is cooked? With that little of a time to cook a full cow, it must be fairly rare." He stated.

"Oh! No! It wasn't the whole cow, just steaks. See it was already butchered ahead of time before being bought, and we didn't get a full cow, just the steak parts of it that are the most tender and juicy. And with today's modern technology we can cook things quicker and prepare it easier. Our chef cooked this all himself in less than two hours tops." He explained.

"Oh right...modern times have evolved far pass that of my time's knowledge." He said before he stabbed the meat with his fork and lifted it up whole in order to tear it apart with his teeth.

"Umm, please cut it first... I don't want grease juices on my bedspread..." Dee asked nervously, giving Kevin a disappointed yet sassy pout.

"Cut it? Oh, with the cutlery." He said cutting the food before him yet it was too hard for him to do it on his own, his motor skills still not up to par with his consciousness. He then looked confused when Dee took his fork and knife and cut the meat up like it was butter. It was fast and smooth and his slices were even and fair to each given piece. He was amazed a prince cut his own food with such ease, as if he was able to do so freely his entire life. "Wow, you are a master at this. But then again I dunno how much strength I have in my arms. I haven't been able to move in so long." He complained before he started eating and smiled at the seasoned bites in his mouth, his eyes nearly watering from sheer happiness.

Dee smiled before he went and grabbed a book to read, watching Kevin every so often eat his food like he hadn't eaten in weeks, correction, centuries. He then was amazed by Kevin's ability to gulp down a quart of water in less than five-minutes. He was astounded at what hunger could do to a man when he hasn't eaten in centuries.

Kevin finished and smiled, full for the night and happy he was finally free. He had forgotten what food tasted like and felt like in his stomach. Even though time had stopped for his body's functions, the thought of not being able to eat in so long really created a psychological need for the food even though his body could feel like it has only been less than 12 hours since the last time he has had a meal. He sighed and looked over at Dee, happy to see the twerp so eager to read as if he was lost in the book forever.

"Hey, Dee." He said softly.

"Yes, Kevin?" His companion asked.

"Care to bathe with me?" He teased, hoping for a good reaction from the dork.

Dee was startled by the thought and his entire face and neck turned red. He had never bathed naked with anyone but his brother and that was when they were kids. He was an adult and bathing together seemed too erotic for him to think about but the thought intrigued him nevertheless and he did promise Kevin a bath.

"Alright Kevin, I'll bathe with you, if you promise not to be too loud. I still don't know how to explain this all to my family." He said kind of bashful about bathing with another guy let alone someone he was interested in.

"Alright then, it's a deal! Come on!" He said happily, eager to bathe and finally get to know more about his new soulmate.

Dee smiled and giggled, shaking his head on how weird Kevin seemed to be even though he expected Kevin to be regal and high-and-mighty. Dee put his bookmark in his book and closed it, setting it on his table next to his cushioned chair. He stood up and walked over to Kevin, reaching out his hand to lead Kevin to the bathroom just down the hall.

Kevin took Dee's hand and walked with him, silently and cautiously as they tip-toed to the other side of the hallway to the bathroom, still as big and white as Kevin remembered. It hadn't changed except for the updated appliances, metal, and redone porcelain tiles and tub, set directly in the center of the floor, nearly encasing it like a rug. Kevin looked up at a glass corner with an additional faucet and hose and he went up to it to look at it.

"What's this contraption?" He asked curiously as he opened the glass door and couldn't believe windows could become doors of all things.

"It's a shower. You stand up and bathe rather than sit down and bathe."

"Stand? Why would anyone want to do that?" Kevin asked curiously.

"Because if you want to bathe in a bathtub, you will be more likely to stay in longer than when standing up. If you are standing up, you can quickly shower, wash your hair, and scrub your skin in less time then it would take you to bathe in a tub. Most people take showers nowadays because it is quicker, easier, and it can rinse your hair out faster." He said before he showed Kevin the different pulse settings and how strong the force of the water could be.

"Wow, like a waterfall but also like rain. I'm impressed times have improved so much." Kevin said looking happy more and more with this time frame. He then saw a toilet and was happy to see it. "Oh thank heavens!" He said, feeling the sudden rush in his bladder to go. He has been holding it in for 1000 years and he just drank a full jug of water in 5 minutes.

Double D snickered before he looked away to give Kevin his privacy. He then started to run the water in the tub and checked the heat so it wasn't too hot or two cold. When the temperature was just right he got out of his clothes for the day and stepped in and sighed, enjoying the warmth of the clean water and finally able to take a bath for the day.

Kevin finished his business and left it unflushed until Double D cleared his throat and stared at him to flush it.

"Push the handle down." He said, sounding as if he was scolding a child to remember to flush the toilet.

Kevin looked behind him then he noticed the handle and almost jumped when he heard it flush and watch the water go down. "Wow, impressive." He said again before he too started to undress out of his formal suit and get in the tub with Double D, hoping the plan was still on to bathe together.

Double D kept his hat on even while bathing and it made Kevin a little curious about what was underneath. He reached for the hat but Double D instinctively grabbed Kevin's hand to stop him.

"Please don't." He said, kind of shy and upset that Kevin might see what was underneath.

"Why? What's wrong?" Kevin asked curiously.

"I am just not ready to show you what is underneath." He said sounding as if whatever was underneath was some big secret that he might think Kevin will shy away from it if he saw.

Kevin looked a little sad but his heart was telling him, no matter what this kid says or shows him could not force him to turn away from this little raven-haired teen. He scooted over towards Dee and made him look at him.

"Nothing you can do will make me think differently of you." He said, showing Dee with his eyes and his genuine smile that he meant it and that it didn't bother him with whatever was underneath the weird-looking hat.

Double D looked nervous, his body shivering in the hot water but he knew he had to at least man up to it, not just for Kevin but himself as well. If he hid form everyone he cared for, he was bound to lose them and let it run his life forever. He made his decision and slowly took off the hat, showing the scar on his forehead, it trailing upwards and slightly into his scalp where the hair didn't grow.

Kevin saw the scar and looked at it carefully, noticing Double D's worried expression about what Kevin was thinking about it. All he was thinking was, _"What happened?" _He wanted to know how Double D got that scar and why he was so ashamed of it. He then realized, that didn't matter, because he was really beginning to like this boy and he knew from the garden that he wanted to be with this boy. His heart was drawn to Dee and he wanted to be with him, despite the obstacles in their way.

He leaned in and kissed Dee's scar, his lips caressing the shattered skin but he knew appearance was nothing compared to the soul. He knew what it was like to be physically scarred, stuck with what you were and not being able to fix it until someone came along and accepted him. He smiled at Dee and Dee looked somewhat shocked that his scar was just kissed, but he was able to smile soon after, happy that he was cared for.

Dee looked up and looked shocked to see his brother, Eddward, standing there in the doorway, looking confused and some what angry. Kevin looked up and was shocked to see Dee's brother ether. All he could think was, "_Well, this will be interesting."_


End file.
